Tales of Cadence

[Gamestop]

Whoops, no Will lines. Oh well, awesome
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by Sir Shrek

sexy avy by Pictomaster Murasaki.

[Sir Shrek]

[KK Twain]

[Desmond the Patient]

[Roadie]

Much thanks for the comments on the skit. Like I said before, I've been dying to post it for months. And we've almost got all the lines turned in so the audio version should be posted soon!

Toku: Take your time. Work on NaNo!

Kevvie-sensei: What lying? ;D

KK: I'm tempted to let you all guess it and see what everyone comes up with... But it may come up in a skit later in the story. (Though I'm leaning more toward an ambiguous ending...)


Until the audio skit/questionnaire are completed, here's another skit...


Skit: Easy to Please

Ilia: …

Skylar: Hello, Ilia.

Ilia: What do you want? Stop staring at me like that, you creeper!

Skylar: My, I was just saying hello. You know, I have to wonder if Raven’s starting to influence you.

Ilia: No, I just don’t want to talk to you. Go away!

Skylar: Hmm, perhaps his attitude is poisonous … Maybe I should warn the others.

Ilia: You’re the one who’s poisonous! Why can’t you just leave me alone?

Skylar: I was just going to thank you for making dinner the other night. It was very nice to have a normal meal for the first time in a while.

Ilia: What do you usually eat? Termites and wild honey?

Skylar: No, of course not.

Ilia: Well, er … Thanks, I guess. I’m glad you liked it!

Skylar: The curry was some of the best I’ve had in my short lifetime. Just the right amount of flavor … Simple, yet delicious.

Ilia: O-Oh, thank you! I tried a little something different this time so I wasn’t sure if it was going to turn out that great … But I’m glad to hear it was still good!

Skylar: The permanent members of this party are lucky to have a chef of your caliber to cook for them.

Ilia: Th-Thank you! … Hey, wait a second! Stop trying to butter me up like that! Argh!

(She leaves)

Elsynne: Er, Skylar … Why are you trying to mess with Ilia like that?

Skylar: I was just trying to thank her and she took the compliment so well I wanted to see how vain she really was.

Elsynne: Oh, you’re impossible…
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[KK Twain]

Then I'm going to guess that Arngon's male DNA comes from either Skylar or Will.

Also, lol at the skit.

Now then, this is how I decided to spend saturday afternoon: http://i232.photobucket.com/albums/ee258/KK_Twain/ToCp1.jpg

There. I apologize for my horrible drawing, inking, and layout skills.

[Roadie]

Got lots of ToC **** done with the dead forums. I was so motivated until they came back.

Ooh, KK, I like the manga page. That's really neat. I'll add it to the front page. <3

Yeah the questionnaire isn't quite done yet...blame ToS2 and my cold. But here's a skit foreshadowing one of Ilia's costume titles, so enjoy. I ripped off the newspaper title from my original hometown, if anyone's interested. :')


Skit: Sights and Sounds

Stephen: Oh, hey, that building over there! Was that store here before? And this stand on the corner – did it always sell that newspaper? Hey, Ophelia, what was the original name of the newspaper before we left?

Ophelia: Good gods Stephen, just shut up already.

Ilia: For someone who’s trying to avoid this place you sure are talkative.

Stephen: Aren’t you curious about what’s changed?

Ophelia: No. It’s only been seven years, for Baldur’s sake. It’s not like they renovated the entire city since we left.

Stephen: That’s true, I suppose… (sigh)

Ilia: Hey, is that a school over there?

Stephen: Ah! That’s where Ophelia and I went to school!

Ophelia: Before you dropped out, anyway.

Ilia: Ooh, neat! I’ve always wanted to go to school since I've only had lessons in the Itonian court … Hey, it looks like they even have uniforms here! I want to try one on!

Stephen: We could stop there if you’d like.

Ophelia: (cough)

Stephen: E-Er, maybe not…

Ilia: That’s okay. We can check it out once we’ve got Edward back, right? Ooh, I hope I can drag him to a grammar class. He hates that kind of stuff.

Ophelia: Raven never did strike me as the literary type…

Stephen: Shall we get going? We can visit the school later.

Ilia: All right. To the Tower!

Ophelia: Oh, Stephen… The newspaper was called The Daily Bulletin seven years ago.

Stephen: Ah-ha! I knew it!
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[Gamestop]

Happy happy joy joy. One of the reasons why I wanted the forums back online.
So, hear from Flamzeron yet?
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by Sir Shrek

sexy avy by Pictomaster Murasaki.

[Roadie]

rgdgf hi everyone I love you so much and I missed you

While the forums were dead I decided to divide my Tales of Cadence outline into chapters so we have a rough estimate of how much there is left.

The story will be (roughly) 67 chapters, not including the epilogue.

So we're getting close. I've written up to chapter 53, so...I'll try to finish the rest as soon as possible so we can get on a weekly schedule again.

I've also finished a oneshot to post later, a new questionnaire, and some skits. But for now I hope you enjoy the new chapter!


Chapter XLVIII

Raven walked silently through the long hall, the only sound the soft prod of his boots against the stone tiled floor and the rattle of the chains on his belt. He paused when he saw a faint, fluttering light at the end of the corridor. There was a voice too—deep, but at the same time light and airy—emanating from somewhere in the back of his consciousness. He growled a curse under his breath, instantly blaming his former self, but stopped. This tone was different than he was used to hearing.

‘Who the hell are you?’ he demanded.

The voice didn’t respond. Raven stiffened his shoulders and forced himself into a brisk walk, moving as quickly as he dared down the hallway. The phantom light beyond slowly dissipated as he approached.

The room past the corridor was smaller than he was expecting; it was made completely from a blue-gray stone, suffused with the subtle, sickly sweet scent of black magic. Raven saw several unlit candles on the granite altar in the back. He lit them himself, muttering an incantation under his breath as a warm glow bathed the room.

Now he could see the unfamiliar glyphs carved into the stone wall’s surface. He traced the nearest one with the tip of his finger. ‘I wonder what it means…’

Raven felt his old self mentally prod him from the corner of his mind. “What the hell are you doing?”

“It’s none of your business,” he murmured aloud, stepping away from the wall.

“Of course it’s my business! You’re in my body! My head!”

“You surrendered to this so easily a few days ago. Why struggle now?”

The presence fell silent for a moment. “I…”

A smirk slid effortlessly over Raven’s face. “That’s exactly what I thought.”

Raven approached the altar and placed his hands over the smooth granite, lowering to a crouch. The stone was cold against his exposed fingers.

“Do you even know what you’re supposed to do?” His old self spoke up again, but this time it was haughty and arrogant. It shrunk back with surprise as Raven sifted through old memories, pausing when he found what he wanted.

The image of Elsynne spread over his mind’s eye. She was kneeling at the foot of her own altar in the Sanctuary, her hands folded in front of her body as she recited an ancient prayer. Gold, web-like glyphs stretched across the marble tiles of the floor and walls before the picture faded away.

“…You’re not going to do that.”

“I am.”

“You can’t! The Messenger…this…it’s not even real!”

“It is.”

“They already explained why I could use magic. I’m a half-elf.”

“Can you explain your use of black magic? My presence? Your weakness in the Sanctuary?”

It didn’t respond. “You see,” Raven continued, shifting his crouch into a kneeling position, “you can’t explain everything away.”

“But Harriette said that if this seal was unlocked, the black magic cracks would-“

“I don’t give a damn about what that stupid, arrogant child has to say. If you don’t shut yourself up I’ll destroy whatever’s left of you. Would you prefer that?”

Raven felt the consciousness shiver and pull back into the recesses of his being. When it disappeared he could only hear the quiver of the small flames stemming from the candles.

“I need the incantation to activate the ceremony,” he said to himself, folding his hands awkwardly in front of his body. He swore and placed them at his sides; he didn’t want to look like he was actually praying. It felt ridiculous.

Before Raven could even pull into the darkest alcoves of his mind foreign words suddenly jumped to his lips. “Grant me your strength to unleash the seal imprisoning you…”

The tiles shone with a bright, iridescent light as he effortlessly recited the incantation. The glyphs carved into the stone walls lit up as well, twisting and extending like the curled lettering in the Sanctuary. Black magic that had been hovering over the floor suddenly evaporated, thinning out until it was no more.

Raven was so absorbed in the ceremony that he felt his mind slowly slip away. His awareness of his immediate surroundings limited itself to the chant; he had to finish it, nothing could stop him-

A familiar scream filled the Tower and reverberated down the hall. Raven involuntarily stopped his prayer, cursing loudly. “Damn it!”

“Elsynne wasn’t distracted at all when she was performing her ceremony,” his old self said again, ignoring the waves of frustration Raven sent through his body. “What broke you from yours? It doesn’t make sense.”

Raven hesitated for a long time, his fingers pressed against the floor. “They’re coming,” he announced in a whisper, forcing himself off the ground when he heard footsteps pounding up the stairwell outside.

“Why aren’t you trying to complete the ceremony now?”

“There isn’t time! Even if I started they’d still come and interrupt me.” Raven drew the sword at his side, watching the candlelight dance across the blade’s surface as he held it at eye level. “And besides, I’d prefer to kill them now while I still have the chance. That way they won’t bother me ever again.”

“Five against one…”

“It’ll be easy. They’re all weak, and the Heir will be even weaker here.”

Raven felt hopelessness ripple through his being. “I see…”

He laughed cruelly. “You’ll never be freed from your prison now. You submitted when I came—you’ve already lost. They’ve already lost. No one can win…except for me.”

His consciousness sunk away again, this time with a lingering feeling of melancholy. Raven gave a small, harsh snicker and held his sword tightly in his hand, his muscles tightening with anticipation when he heard his former companions running toward him from the dark corridor.

“Don’t do anything that will get me killed.”

Raven had no time to protest against that muffled part of himself. Elsynne was the first to break through the darkness of the tunnel, her staff clasped tightly in her hand. Her face was pale and covered by an almost invisible sheen of perspiration, but she smiled.

“Raven! You’re all right,” she said, pausing a few feet away from him. She glanced warily at the sword in his hands and looked back up at his face. “You haven’t started the ceremony, either.”

The others raced in behind her, and Raven felt his stomach drop when he saw Skylar. His old self was suddenly active again, a torrent of violent images pounding against his mind. “That bastard! What the hell is he doing here?”

“Raven,” Elsynne took another step forward.

“Don’t get to close. We don’t know what he’ll do,” Skylar warned her. His smooth, calm tone brought back a rush of memories. Raven’s former consciousness spat an oath.

Ilia narrowed her eyes. “What about earlier? How do you feel, Elsynne?”

“That scream.” The words involuntarily slipped past Raven’s lips. He shuddered when he realized they weren’t his own, and he pushed his old self aside again.

Elsynne gave him a fleeting, sheepish grin. “T-The atmosphere of this place…it took me by surprise.”

Again, Raven’s old self spoke up without his permission. “The pain?”

“Yes…how did you…?” Elsynne suddenly winced. “Oh, the Sanctuary…”

Raven pushed the stifled part of himself back again. ‘Go away! This isn’t your time!’ he hissed, suppressing the fragment before it could push past his defenses once more.

“…Raven.” Elsynne said his name again, glancing up at him through her eyelashes. “What happened to you? How…how much of you is left? I know that isn’t you. Harriette said you were…possessed, I think?”

Raven lowered his sword, tilting his head to the side. He said nothing and stared over her head at the collection of weapons trained on his body. His former companions were tense, watching him with unblinking eyes.

“A-Anyway…” Elsynne hesitated, biting the corner of her lip. “I wanted to try to talk to you before anything happened.”

Raven didn’t respond. He waited for her to continue, but she had stopped, staring at him expectantly. He flicked a strand of hair from his eyes and leaned to one side.

“What do you want me to do?” he asked, keeping his tone as neutral as possible.

Elsynne seemed pleased by his turnaround. “Stop trying to initiate the ceremony here. Come back with us.”

Raven nearly dropped the blade from his hands. He threw back his head and laughed, clasping one hand over his forehead. He realized how eerie the sound must have been to the others; the high-ceilinged altar room, although confined, still echoed and reverberated like the Sanctuary had.

“Do you honestly think talk like that will change my mind?” he asked. He could see them staring at him, confused and obviously disturbed, but he didn’t care anymore.

Elsynne steeled herself, gripping her staff with white-knuckled hands. “Raven…I don’t want this to come down to a fight! Please, we can still work things out!”

“All you want me to do is stop the ceremony!”

This time Harriette stepped forward. “If you try to unlock that seal you’ll kill everyone! The-“

“I don’t give a damn about your theories!”

Elsynne stepped forward, placing herself between Raven and her younger sister. “Don’t do this,” she warned through gritted teeth. “Please.”

Raven advanced toward them, his smirk growing when he saw the others shirk back. Only Elsynne stood motionless, her gaze quickly becoming a hard glare. She lowered her arms and approached him until they were mere feet apart.

“You still have a chance,” she murmured, her voice hardly a whisper. “Even if you’re…possessed…come back with us. I promise we can all work something out.”

Raven narrowed his eyes. “You’ll have to drag my dead body back if you want me to leave the Tower before the ceremony’s complete.”

Elsynne sighed quietly and held out her hand. “I’m sorry, Raven.” She suddenly dropped the staff and jumped forward, moving faster than Raven had ever seen her run. Raven dodged to the side and grabbed her by the wrists.

Elsynne crumpled in his grasp, falling to the floor with a sharp, pained cry. Raven nearly let go; was she in pain because of his touch now? He gripped her tighter, ignoring the burn in his fingers. He felt himself grin when she twisted away, clearly in agony.

An arrow flew over his head, grazing the top of his hair. Skylar’s voice barely brought him back to reality. “Stop, Raven!”

But Raven ignored him. He let go of Elsynne’s wrists and placed both of his hands on the sides of her face. Elsynne struggled wildly, trying uselessly to pull away, her dull nails tearing into his thick gloves.

The pointed tip of Felix’s rapier stuck him in the torso. Raven rapidly spun away, letting go of Elsynne’s face as he pulled the sword from his side and blocked Felix’s next strike. He felt a warm trickle of blood run down his skin.

“What was that for?” Felix demanded. He held his rapier up, maintaining a defensive position. “You knew it hurt her!”

Raven sneered. “That’s exactly why I did it!”

“That’s…!”

A bullet ricocheted off the stone behind them. Raven pulled back, sidestepping another stab from Felix. Magic pooled at his feet and he rolled forward, wincing when a shock of fire singed his leg.

‘I have to take them all on at once, don’t I?’ he thought, jumping to his feet. ‘Unless…’

Ilia caught his eye. “Are you going to fight me as well?” he challenged.

She flinched away at first, gripping her baton even tighter. “I have to! T-The black magic…”

“Didn’t you want to drag me here with Lukas and Ophelia for this ceremony in the first place?”

“Back then I did…”

“We fought together against Skylar when he betrayed us in the Sanctuary. We’ve worked together for so long, Ilia. Why are you going to betray me now?”

The girl shivered backward again. “Argh, you sound just like him when you talk like that! Stop!”

“…I sound like who?”

“Stop trying to convert people to your side, Raven,” Skylar warned, pulling another arrow from the quiver at his side. “Either step down now or I’ll force you to your knees myself.”

Raven shrugged, twisting his sword in his hand. “You can give it a try if you’d like.”

“For now, leave this to me,” Skylar said to the others, loading the arrow into his bow. “Don’t interfere.”

Felix turned, his rapier still clasped tightly in his hand. “But, Skylar-“

“I said, don’t interfere.”

Raven smiled faintly, adjusting his grip on the hilt of the sword. He watched Skylar’s hand on the bowstring, waiting…

But instead Skylar launched off the stone floor, spinning halfway through the air before he released the arrow. Raven jumped to the left, swearing quietly as the flame-charged arrowhead brushed his shoulder and hit the ground nearby.

‘That bastard,’ Raven thought, watching the elf land neatly with his bow still clenched in his fist.

“What’s wrong? You look surprised,” Skylar said. He held out his hands, black magic crackling around his fingers. “You fought alongside me for so long. You didn’t spend that time studying how I battled?”

Raven hissed under his breath, running forward to meet Skylar on the other side of the altar platform. Skylar threw up his bow, blocking Raven’s first strike. The elf dove forward again, throwing up another plume of black magic as Raven conjured a barrier of his own. He fought to control his shield but Skylar’s was far too strong. Raven struggled for a moment, his barrier wavering as Skylar’s magic overtook his. Raven’s eyes met his briefly; the elf wasn’t even winded by the internal tussle.

The shields exploded with a burst of energy, knocking them both to the sides. Skylar rolled easily to his feet and clenched his fists, summoning a pair of black vines. Raven ducked, using his own magic to block the stems before they could wrap around his ankles. The elf shot forward again, this time hovering only inches away. Raven threw out his fist, striking Skylar in the stomach with a flash of black magic.

“Ah!” Skylar flew back, landing roughly on his heels. He raised his arms and tossed up a cloud of energy without missing a beat.

‘No!’ Raven cringed backward, instinctively throwing his hands over his face. The hot, cloying black magic flung him aside like a flimsy doll, his arms flailing uselessly before he hit the ground. He gasped sharply, the wind knocked from his lungs.

The thick smoke began to clear and Skylar knelt over Raven’s body, keeping the point of an arrow level with his neck like a knife. “You’ve lost,” he said, a cruel smile crossing his lips.

Raven scowled, bracing his feet against the floor. “Did I?” He kicked up, slamming his knees into Skylar’s abdomen. The elf flinched and swayed to the side, casting another swell of black magic. Raven gagged when it hit him in the stomach, throwing him to the ground.

The vines wrapped around his wrists and ankles, binding him to the floor. Skylar stood and walked around Raven in a lazy half-circle, twisting an arrow in his fingers. “This little contest reminds me of someone I fought almost two decades ago,” he said casually.

Raven tried pushing himself to his feet, struggling against his bonds without success. “That doesn’t matter now,” he murmured, clenching his jaw.

Skylar grabbed his bow with his free hand and reloaded it, aiming the point of the arrow toward Raven’s vulnerable neck. “I suppose not. I was just commenting, that’s all.”

“Stupid comments like that have no place in a battle.”

The elf smirked. “You’re sounding more and more like him every day, I swear.”

Raven paused, his hands clasping the vines. They felt unusually cold against his fingers. “Like who?”

Ilia suddenly started forward, a spell circle forming beneath her feet. “Skylar, don’t…!”

Skylar flicked his wrist, throwing up a barrier before a bolt of white-hot lightning exploded beside him. “I fought him about eighteen or seventeen years ago. The one who ruined me, I mean. Did I tell you that in the Sanctuary?”

“Why do you think I’d care?” Raven asked, his eyes narrowed.

“Ah, of course you wouldn’t…”

The black vines snapped and dissipated. Raven grabbed his sword and pushed himself to his feet in one quick, fluid movement. Skylar blocked his attack with another barrier and conjured more black magic. Raven gave a cry of surprise, his hand clamping around the wound at his side.

“You’re still curious. It’s distracting you,” Skylar said, grabbing him by the neck. Raven gasped, choking when the elf’s hands curled tightly around his throat.

“Icicle!”

Skylar flinched and let go. A spike of cold, frosty ice materialized to his right and ripped into his side, shooting from the ground like a frozen stake. Scarlet blood splattered the alabaster tile as Raven hit the ground again with a loud crack.

“Ilia, you traitor!” Skylar hissed, lightly touching the new injury at his torso. “What the hell were you thinking?!”

Ilia stumbled. Her face was pale and her hands shook; the baton dropped from her grasp and landed with a thud. “I…”

Skylar hesitated as his green eyes swept over the group. “I see now. None of you wanted to go through with this anyway. I’m the only one who can stop him without regret.”

“I can still fight!” Harriette protested, pulling a Charm from her pocket. “I’ll go!”

“No.” Elsynne placed a hand on her sister’s shoulder and pushed her aside. She looked up at Skylar, her gaze resolute. “I’ll fight Raven. I’ll stop him from performing the ceremony.”

“Let me act as back up, at least,” Stephen offered uneasily. “The dragonlings can help as well.”

“Elsynne, I want to stop him, too,” Felix added.

Elsynne smiled weakly and nodded to each of them. “All right.” She turned back to Skylar. “We can take this from here. Please, stand back.”

The elf frowned, his hands falling to his sides. “I’m not sure…”

“I have Amalthea’s power on my side. As long as I have that we can stop him. I promise. I just want…to talk to him. Please.”

“But he has Baldur’s-“

“He probably can’t control it as well as he’d like,” Harriette said, a sly smile spreading over her lips. “Whereas my sister has been using her light magic for most of her life.”

“I…” Skylar stopped himself, massaging his temples with his free hand. “Fine. I need to heal my wounds now, but if I can see that things aren’t going well I’ll interfere and kill him.”

Raven stirred, quietly infusing his aching limbs with black magic. He felt the healing power of the poisonous miasma seep through his skin, cooling and healing the wounds scoring his body. He forced himself to his feet and grabbed the hilt of his sword, brandishing it through the air. Elsynne, Felix, Stephen, Ophelia, Arngon and Cymbeline stood across from him.

“All right!” Raven’s cruel smile returned as his cold eyes met Elsynne’s. “Amalthea’s magic will never be enough! I’ll complete this ceremony even if it kills me!”
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[Sir Shrek]

Oh yeah. I've been waiting for quite some time for a new installment of ToC. And I'm far from dissapointed. That was superb; the big climatic battle to... something is ready to begin in earnest. I'm likeing what your doing with this story, Roadie. Keep it up.
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Credit to squidmaster64 for the fanbar.

[Gamestop]

Love ya <3
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by Sir Shrek

sexy avy by Pictomaster Murasaki.

[Roadie]

Oh god the forums are back. :') Watch them die again. But thanks so much for the comments on the chapter, Sir Shrek and YZorker. This Raven arc was fun to write.

Okay so: I'll still be posting a oneshot (****) and a new questionnaire this week if the forums don't die again...the new chapter will also be posted next Monday, forums permitting. As much as I'd love to post the audio skits, I still can't because several people haven't sent in their lines.

I've had this skit sitting around and it's finally time to post it. :')


Skit: A Request, Part IV

Ophelia: Stephen?

Stephen: Ah, Ophelia! Great timing!

Ophelia: Er...?

Stephen: It’s all finished!

Ophelia: What is?

Stephen: The weapon you asked me to make you, of course! It’s finally done and tested!

Ophelia: Oh, really? Can I use it?

Stephen: Yep! Here, let me show you how it works...

Ophelia: It’s a...gun?

Stephen: I spent a lot of time thinking about it, and the best way for you to implement your black magic into a weapon would be through projectile bullets and such. I do the same thing with the Spirits’ power and it works great for me!

Ophelia: What do I do?

Stephen: The gun uses special bullets than absorb magical energy...or in your case, black magical energy. Charge them however you’d like before you fire. Heck, you can even combine black magic and elemental magic with those things! It’s great!

Ophelia: Ah, this should make my attacks far more powerful... Thank you, Stephen. I appreciate the effort you’ve put into this project.

Stephen: Of course! I’m glad you like it!

Ophelia: Fufufu, I can’t wait to test it out myself... Oh, Raven! Come here, there’s something I want to show you!
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[Gamestop]

Poor Raven. Also I want a gun like that. Even though it wouldn't make any difference for me if it could utilize black magic or not...
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by Sir Shrek

sexy avy by Pictomaster Murasaki.

[Zandra]

For both the chapter and skit: *insert evil laughter here*

Poor Raven. Now another person wants to try out weapons on him.

Raven: This is your fault, Stephen. *curses*

Edit: Oh, and sorry about not having Ophelia's (and Felix's) lines. I totally forgot about them, and I can't do them right now because I have a horrible cold/something is wrong with my chest. I swear, I sound like a guy right now, it's that bad.
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[Sir Shrek]

Yeah forums are back. I hate it when they just spontaniously die. I like the skit, roadie. Poor Eddy . Hope you get well soon, Zandra.
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Credit to squidmaster64 for the fanbar.